Learn about the Tarot—through study and dream.
I post the meanings of each card, accumulate different tarot spreads, post tutorial videos or walk-through guides, and once in a while I'll do readings live!
About 78 Nights of Tarot
Posts of Interest
Questions Asked
Follower Submissions
Tools/Resources
Video Tutorials
Sources/Credit
Example Readings
The Tarot
The Fool's Journey
Card of Meditation
Card Index
- The Fool
- The Magician
- The High Priestess
- The Empress
- The Emperor
- The Hierophant
- The Lovers
- The Chariot
- Strength
- The Hermit
- The Wheel of Fortune
- Justice
- The Hanged Man
- Death
- Temperance
- The Devil
- The Tower
- The Star
- The Moon
- The Sun
- Judgement
- The World
The Minor Arcana
The Suits
Number Cards
Court Cards
Suit of Swords
Suit of Wands
Suit of Cups
Suit of Pentacles
Spread Index
View All Spreads
3 May 2012. 10 card spread.
The Hermit, Reversed. Currently, I’ve been in a reserved state… longing for new adventures or outlets.
7 of Cups. I have been distracted by opportunities. A variety of choices have prevented me from making any kind of productive decisions or taking action.
7 of Swords. In my past, an event/person has been taking away my power—my ability to work and think has been diverted by some one or something…. Most likely my overload of problems I deal with at work and just all the stuff that’s on my plate.
Strength. Recently, I have been able to face this diversion with a confidence and understanding. I’ve started to get my footing.
Ace of Wands. The best to come of my path is a new enthusiasm. Something that will revive lost energy. (I think I already know what may cause this to occur, I just hope others are ready for it).
The Lovers. Very soon I will strengthen my bond with a very important individual in my life.
The High Priestess, Reversed. Factors which have been laying low and out of sight are going to come back to haunt me a bit, or force me into making some decisions I’m not ready to come to terms with.
4 of Cups, Reversed. Everyone around me has been getting me down… on my nerves… just somewhat in the way. They provide no source of replenishment.
The Moon, Reversed. I’ve been feeling myself a bit more deeply. I’ve been creating more art and have been trying to touch on more sensitive subjects. Because this is reversed, it indicates that I haven’t been pushing hard enough… I’m holding back.
The Chariot, Reversed. Control. Control is something I need to have down. Being able to face things head on and take what I have… turn it around in unexpected ways… It’s tough. Control is out of reach (indicated by reversed orientation).
Share Your Tarot Stories
If you have an insightful, spooky, or plain-old story involving a reading you’ve done, given someone else, or have received please share it!
You can submit them here!
The Runes vs. The Tarot
Divination is mysterious and exciting. It reveals our subconscious allowing us to see the world (and ourselves) from a remote and independent perspective.
The Tarot and the Runes are two of the more popular modern forms of divination. They both have their advantages and weak-points given the situation. Knowing their strengths and weaknesses will allow you to chose the best tool for the situation.
The Tarot is a level-headed player. The four suits reflect four aspects of our world: the material (pentacles/earth) and metaphysical (swords/air)—the social (cups/water) and personal (wands/fire). The major arcana represents the cyclical stepping stones within our universe that manifest in various places of our lives. The Tarot is very broad and expansive. 78 is a lot of cards and the probability and variety you can get with just one spread is incredible. Use the Tarot for seeing things in a fair light—they virtually clear biased information or perspectives. This is why the cards can be so brutal—they tell it like it is.
The Runes are precise. The glyphs contain focused energy pushing toward one goal. The Runes communicate with your higher-self (sub-conscious). The Runes are actually your higher-self using symbols to communicate with your waking self. This means the Runes strive to achieve what is most beneficial for your survival. The Runes help you in times of need, here in the now. This doesn’t necessarily mean the Runes will give you selfish or oppressive information—the Runes are giving advice which apply specifically to the self. The Runes strive for progression and victory.
Use the Tarot for what-if/future situations, reflecting on the past/present, or simply exercising mental thought. Typically evaluates a long time-frame: approximately a 6 month time-span. The cards focus on telling a story and giving advice where the Runes may give you specific proactive directions.
Use the Runes for direct answers to progress to the next step. The Runes target your weakness and a counter-“attack”. Typically evaluates a short time-frame: it could even be down to minutes. I would use Runes more often than the Tarot, especially for daily use. Sometimes it’s best to keep it simple with Runes than using the complexity of the Tarot.
You are most certainly welcome! Let me know if you have any questions or feedback from your experiences.
Enjoy <3
Not a silly question :)
Technically, as long as it is an open-ended question (can’t be answered with ‘yes’ or ‘no’) you should be fine.
With the Runes you have to make a statement—not a question. So for example you would say, “The issue is my marriage.” as opposed to saying “How is my marriage?”. This may not be the case with the Tarot, but because you’re evaluating a situation (comprised of variables and conditions) it may be best to approach your questions with this concept. You don’t want to state the question in a way that will be compromised by the card-positions’ meanings. Make it fair game on the playing field.
It’s also a good idea to think of the type of answer you want and ask the right question corresponding to that. If you can put your thoughts in a sentence you are forming your intent into something manageable. If you want an answer of how to do something make sure you ask how. If you want to know why make sure you ask why—easy logic but easily forgotten.
<3 Axank
24 Nights of Runes
Introducing 24 Nights of Runes! A new blog that approaches the Runes in a similar fashion as 78 Nights of Tarot.
Please subscribe and reblog this post to spread the word!
Thanks everyone!
What two significant factors will I be influenced by externally within the next four days of this week? 2 April 2012. 2 card spread.
10 of Pentacles My biggest negative influence will be finances. Starting April 1st I have been keeping every receipt and have been tracking my cash spending/income. I may struggle with keeping my spending habits under-wrap and knowing the best way to approach finances. I may also find that my skills can get in the way of my own progress
2 of Cups, Reversed My most positive influence is the intimacy I achieve with those around me. Riding on the opportunities to expand the relationships I have will exhilarate what I can achieve these next few days. This card is reversed, so I have a feeling I should be gentle with this as there may be sensitivities and a line I should not cross.
Shuffle the cards thoroughly. When you feel ready split the deck in two with your left hand. Take the remainder that was on the bottom and place it on the top of the deck. Pull the cards one after the other from the top of the deck and place them in the spread as specified numerically.
I made a video on how I do this which can be found here.
There are many ways to pull cards into your spread… surprisingly it’s not really explained on the internet very well. Maybe some one else will be willing to share?
The 2 Card Spread
Use this spread to look at one significant positive and one significant negative of a situation or state of mind.
Card 1—Positive Aspect.
Card 2—Negative Aspect.
A very simple spread to give you the high and low point of a situation. Great for daily, weekly, or conditional spreads.
Card of Meditation. 8 March 2012. Thoth Crowley Deck.
10 of Cups (Reversed)
- “Satiety”
- Malkuth
- Mars in Pisces
- cups (reversed) = maleficent emotional situations
- 10 (reversed) = limitations, end-of-the-road
My Observations (2 days)
“False satisfaction”. “More cups than you have wine for”.
Lately I have felt overpowered, with all energy drained. I had no focus, drive, or desire to do daily tasks.
I think this card is referencing my emotionally absorbed behavior. I am focusing too much on the taxing qualities of something (like how work has been emotionally draining) and that energy absorbed there left too little to be applied elsewhere.
I was spread too thin. Enforcing this energy (of this card) would lead to insanity. Its reversed state indicated decline and false satisfaction. Do less of what you’re doing and more of what you are not/could be doing instead.
Life Applications/Resolutions
Maybe this card is trying to tell me that my emotional investments are not getting me anywhere. The number 10 really sticks out as a limit, not a finish-line. Satiety in this regard is apparent because the investments I am making have been fully saturated, and if invest anything else that I put into my life emotionally it will just spill over—what a waste.
Keeping a Tarot Journal or Divinatory Record
The initial benefits of keeping a divinatory record include
- contesting past entries (in/validates past readings)
- expanding personal experiences with specific cards or other tools
- solidifying technique and communication skills
In my journal I keep not only Tarot readings but Rune readings and significant dreams as well. Typically, I would include any form of divination including pendulum readings, scrying observations, astral projection journeys, etc. You name it.
When it comes to the Tarot you may also want to include a “Card of Meditation” along with your recorded readings. A card of meditation is where you pull a single card and let that card speak to you over a period of a day or two. Once you’ve had time for the meaning to melt, you can record new observations or insights.
I try to keep one reading to a page. At the top of every page I put the date, type of tool I’m using (Tarot/Runes/Dream etc.), and the type of reading (for myself, for another person, card of meditation). I will also include which deck I’m using. The information you provide in this entry should be enough to allow you to recreate the exact spread at anytime. Draw pictures and write card placements to ensure this is possible. You will develop your ability to perform readings because keeping a journal forces you to put thoughts into sentences—this may not be easy at first.
I advise purchasing a clean, simple book and a fine point pen that you use only for this purpose. The pen I use (in the photo) is only for “metaphysical practices”.
If you have any questions about Divinatory Journals/Records please ask me. I can also give you ideas if you need help getting started.
Card of Meditation
Hello my dear sweet children of the night.
So I want to present to you what I call the “card of meditation”. I’m sure I picked this up from my studies somewhere. I’ve only used this technique a few times but am only now just realizing how beneficial it is. If you want to get a deeper meaning of cards within any Tarot deck, please perform a card of meditation!
All this involves is pulling one card from your deck. Place this one card on your sacred space, pillow, or place that it can remain throughout the day. If it can’t stay out unattended, you may write the card on your arm or on a note (or simply memorize the card you pulled).
Using your Tarot Journal or other notebook, keep it handy. As you progress through the day let thoughts inspired by this card come to you. Consider the number, suit, reversed/regular and any other stats of the card that help comprise its central meaning. You will have more success comparing this card to your current life. Do not just try to come up with “template meanings”, it will not help you. Find real life applications in your own life.
I actually leave a card out 2-3 days. I do not force myself to come up with answers or observations of how the card relates to my life. I just let the thoughts come on their own. If after 2-3 days I get no information, I simply jot down what I can, and replace the card back.
This is a very nice break from daily spreads, and you will find that it still packs a punch regardless of how its only one card. Quality not quantity.
Okay, I’ve stared at this a long time and still don’t get it.
Over 600 Followers!
Hot damn, didn’t expect to get to this level of publicity.
I am most definitely taking requests for blog content as I have had a decline in the inspiration department.
Oh, and an update for the rune blog: Still not launched yet. Haha! I want to do a good amount of research before I even start blogging to get my head on straight. It still is happening, I’m just behind schedule.
Hope 2012 is off to a good start for all of you!
<3 Axank
